Google RE centric lawyers, call the largest property management companies in the areas for lawyer rec's, or local investors or investment centric agents in the area to find a good one.

Go to local real estate meetups and see what investors also have a license.

Up until the trustee sale (foreclosure auction), the home is still owned and fully controlled by the home owner.I’m assuming you’re going to be looking at off-market properties (since loan status isn’t something they advertise on the MLS so you likely wouldn’t even know if it was in default if it’s a listed property).So, in that case, you’d just negotiate a purchase agreement with the home owner and then take the contract to your local escrow/title company to open escrow. 

Here is the specific language from Assembly Bill No. 68:a local agency, special district, or water corporation shall not require the applicant to install a new or separate utility connection directly between the accessory dwelling unit and the utility or impose a related connection fee or capacity charge, unless the accessory dwelling unit was constructed with a new single-family home.If the Planning Department is telling you that you need separate utilities and you're adding an ADU to a lot with an existing SFR, refer them to the above language from AB 68.

You can start real estate investing, reading resources, familiarizing yourself with the Albany, GA market, setting short-term and long-term goals, preparing financially, building a team, conducting property searches, conducting due diligence, making an offer, managing property, and joining local groups.

While a single stall garage might be only a ~10k adjustment on an appraisal depending on your local market, the lack of garage can kill market value which is harder to predict.

Because wholesale deals are not something advocated by your local Realtor assn.

Local planning department.

You lost me completely by your failure to understand that if a buyer approaches a seller and offers to take over their property subject to the lender's lien, and stops paying and puts that borrower into default or, if the borrower was in default already, that "buyer" may run afoul of local/state laws and may be accused of equity skimming.

Work with the city and local brokers to identify the exact product type to meet the housing needs of the area.